SMU runners Nea Sanders, Macey Hilton and Kirin Chacchia are one race away from earning NCAA Championship spots in Eugene.
SMU track and field has three runners sitting right on the edge of an NCAA Championship breakthrough, and now the Mustangs get their shot to turn strong opening runs into tickets to Eugene.
At the NCAA West First Round, Nea Sanders, Macey Hilton and Kirin Chacchia all advanced out of Thursday’s first-round races and into Saturday’s quarterfinals.
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That keeps SMU alive in three major events, with the top three finishers in each heat automatically qualifying for the NCAA Championship.
The next three fastest times overall will also move on, making every step, lean and tenth of a second matter.
Sanders got the job done in the 100-meter hurdles, finishing second in her heat with a time of 13.38.
It wasn’t exactly the mark she wanted, but the result was what mattered. She earned an automatic qualifying spot and will run in the first quarterfinal heat at 6:15 p.m.
Hilton brought some heat of her own in the 800 meters. She ran a personal-best 2:03.83, grabbed third in her heat and moved into the quarterfinal round ranked 11th overall.
That’s a dangerous place to be, because she’s already shown she can rise when the pressure spikes. Hilton races in heat one at 7:05 p.m.
Chacchia may have delivered the loudest statement of the group.
In the 400-meter hurdles, she broke into the 56-second range with a personal-best 56.87, placing second in her heat and entering the next round 10th overall.
SMU also has two athletes chasing Eugene in the triple jump. Senior Hedda Kvalvag and freshman Lotta Edzards will compete in flight two, with the top 12 advancing.
For the Mustangs, Saturday isn’t just another meet. It’s judgment night.
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